AWS WAF vs Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks comparison

AWS Web Application Firewall (WAF) is a firewall security system that monitors incoming and outgoing traffic for applications and websites based on your pre-defined web security rules. AWS WAF defends applications and websites from common Web attacks that could otherwise damage application performance and availability and compromise security.

You can create rules in AWS WAF that can include blocking specific HTTP headers, IP addresses, and URI strings. These rules prevent common web exploits, such as SQL injection or cross-site scripting. Once defined, new rules are deployed within seconds, and can easily be tracked so you can monitor their effectiveness via real-time insights. These saved metrics include URIs, IP addresses, and geo locations for each request.

AWS WAF Features

Some of the solution's top features include:

• Web traffic filtering: Get an extra layer of security by creating a centralized set of rules, easily deployable across multiple websites. These rules filter out web traffic based on conditions like HTTP headers, URIs, and IP addresses. This is very helpful for protection against exploits such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting as well as attacks from third-party applications.

• Bot control: Malicious bot traffic can consume excessive resources and cause downtime. Gain visibility and control over bot traffic with a managed rule group. You can easily block harmful bots, such as scrapers and crawlers, and you can allow common bots, like search engines and status monitors.

• Fraud prevention: Effectively defend your application against bot attacks by monitoring your application’s login page with a managed rule group that prevents hackers from accessing user accounts using compromised credentials. The managed rule group helps protect against credential stuffing attacks, brute-force login attempts, and other harmful login activities.

• API for AWS WAF Management: Automatically create and maintain rules and integrate them into your development process.

• Metrics for real-time visibility: Receive real-time metrics and captures of raw requests with details about geo-locations, IP addresses, URIs, user agents, and referrers. Integrate seamlessly with Amazon CloudWatch to set up custom alarms when events or attacks occur. These metrics provide valuable data intelligence that can be used to create new rules that significantly improve your application protections.

• Firewall management: AWS Firewall Manager automatically scans and notifies the security team when there is a policy violation, so they can swiftly take action. When new resources are created, your security team can guarantee that they comply with your organization’s security rules.

Reviews from Real Users

AWS WAF stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its user-friendly interface and its integration capabilities.

Kavin K., a security analyst at M2P Fintech, writes, “I believe the most impressive features are integration and ease of use. The best part of AWS WAF is the cloud-native WAF integration. There aren't any hidden deployments or hidden infrastructure which we have to maintain to have AWS WAF. AWS maintains everything; all we have to do is click the button, and WAF will be activated. Any packet coming through the internet will be filtered through.”

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks is used for managing cloud security posture, container security, and compliance monitoring in multi-cloud environments.

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks provides tools for vulnerability management, misconfiguration detection, and compliance with standards like HIPAA and CIS. It offers near real-time inventory and alerting, enhancing cloud configuration audits and security across AWS, Azure, and GCP. Its automated security features offer real-time protection and integration into CI/CD pipelines, optimizing visibility, control, and risk identification without manual steps. Despite its capabilities, improvement areas include documentation, pricing clarity, usability, security automation, dashboard customization, and API functionality. Slow support and integration challenges with AWS and third-party tools are noted.

• Dynamic Workload Identity: Automates identity creation for workloads, enhancing security.
• Automated Forensics: Provides swift incident analysis to prevent future vulnerabilities.
• Comprehensive Compliance Monitoring: Monitors compliance with industry standards effortlessly.
• Cloud Security Posture Management: Manages security posture effectively across environments.
• Vulnerability Scanning: Identifies vulnerabilities across multi-cloud setups.
• Identity-Based Micro-Segmentation: Limits access to sensitive data via segmentation.
• Single-Pane Management: Offers streamlined management across cloud platforms.

• Increased Productivity: Streamlined processes reduce time spent on manual tasks.
• Enhanced Security: Real-time threat detection mitigates potential breaches.
• Compliance Assurance: Ensures adherence to necessary industry standards.
• Cost Efficiency: Automated features lower operational costs.
• Improved Integration: Smooth integration into existing CI/CD pipelines.

In industries such as healthcare and finance, Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks enhances security by aligning with strict compliance standards and safeguarding sensitive data. Its tools adapt to rapid cloud service updates and enable secure deployment across diverse cloud infrastructures.